The mystique of playing an NHL game in one of college football’s greatest landmarks is not lost on the Columbus Blue Jackets’ players or coaches.
Even as the group prepares for a critical game against the Detroit Red Wings in Saturday’s Stadium Series clash, the aura surrounding an incredible event in Ohio Stadium won't fade.
“To look at this building and what it's been through, the history – it's just such an iconic building,” Columbus coach Dean Evason said on Friday. “It's so cool to look at. And the sightlines are amazing. We played in Minnesota (when he was the Wild coach) in a baseball stadium, obviously on Target Field. And the sight lines are a little bit different. You look at this, it looks like our arena, it's just a little further away, right? It looks like Nationwide. And then you continue looking up and see all of the great dimensions of the Shoe. And yeah, it gives you chills when you're looking at it.”
Even rivalry allegiances aren’t enough to curtail the enthusiasm for players in the Columbus locker room.
Star Blue Jackets defenseman Zach Werenski, who hails from Grosse Pointe, Michigan and starred for the university’s hockey team as a lifelong fan, isn’t letting his general negative feelings toward the Buckeyes affect his excitement for Saturday. He even said that Ohio State’s national championship football team, which will be honored on the field at the second intermission of the game, adds to the hype surrounding the contest.
“It's incredible. Yeah, no rivalry for me this weekend,” Werenski said. “I'm just putting it out there now. I don't really care about it. It's one of those things where it's a historic venue, they’re the national champs. There's buzz around that. It's great for our fans, for our city. It's great for our team and organization. For me, it's always fun playing against my hometown team, Detroit. But just the whole event for me is super special.”
The NHL is ensuring the Stadium Series game is an extra special event for both teams and a packed Horseshoe of spectators. The field decor lives up to the hype, modeled after an Ohio State football helmet with large helmet stickers featuring images of Buckeye leaves, Blue Jackets cannons and NHL logos. The rink itself sits on a Block ‘O’ in Blue Jackets colors.
A pep rally will be held at St. John Arena featuring Columbus players and the Ohio State athletic band, with a concert from Ohio-based band O.A.R. A fellow platinum-selling Buckeye State-based band, Twenty One Pilots, will perform at the first intermission of the game.
“It kind of blew me away at first, I mean just seeing the ice out there for the first time, pretty special,” center Boone Jenner said. “And enjoying it with my teammates, it's something we've been looking forward to. I think I was saying the other day, we came to a football game here as a team at the end of training camp, and I know it's tough to picture an ice surface out there, so to actually see it out there was pretty special.”
Jenner and the rest of the Blue Jackets got a chance to take in the scenery during practice on Friday, and their families got to join them on the ice afterward for a family skate.
“That's what the whole experience is about, right,” Evason said. “We're very fortunate to be in the role that we're in, regardless if you're a coach or a trainer or a player, and especially a player, that you shouldn't take for granted of what we do for a living. And to share that with your family and with friends or with people that haven't had that experience to be inside and to be on that ice and to skate around and look at this environment, it's amazing.”
Shoe is set up for hockey pic.twitter.com/GUDOTuAbst
— Andy Anders (@AndyAnders55) February 28, 2025
It’s especially special after Columbus lost two members of its family this past August. Star forward Johnny Gaudreau and his brother Matthew Gaudreau were struck and killed while cycling by a driver attempting to overtake other cars. Meredith Gaudreau, Johnny’s widow, will lead the Blue Jackets onto the field for the game, and tributes to Johnny and Matthew will be held throughout the contest.
“We've had some success this year, what have you, points-wise. But our group has been very close from day one. And Johnny is still teaching us in so many ways,” Evason said. “We talk about him a lot. Meredith will be walking us out tomorrow, and Johnny's mom was with us on the moms’ trip, and his dad's around the ice. There’s just so many ways that Johnny has inspired us.
“And the biggest thing, and I told this a few times, but I had only one opportunity to meet him, and I flew there after I was hired here. And I just wanted to get a feel for him and him a feel for me. And what struck me is that not one time did he say, ‘I want to play with this guy, or our power play should be this setup,’ or whatever. All he said is, ‘I want to win. I want to win, and I want this to be a close team.’ And that's what our guys are.”
Jenner said Johnny Gaudreau would have loved every aspect of the event.
“He loved the game, he loved his teammates, he loved everything about it,” Jenner said. “He loved his family, and that family skate afterward was special for him too. We think about him and what he would do a lot of times, what would Johnny do, what would Johnny say, how he would approach this, and there's no doubt he would have a blast. We're going to play for him, obviously tomorrow night, like we have all year, and honor him that way, the best way we can. He would have loved this, everything about it.”
While honoring their teammate and his brother’s memory and soaking in the atmosphere in the Shoe, the Blue Jackets have a chance at a huge victory for their playoff chances.
Columbus and Detroit are tied at the fringe of the Eastern Conference bubble with 66 points, both four points ahead of Ottawa, Boston and the New York Rangers for the final wild card spot. The Blue Jackets notched a 5-2 win over the Red Wings in Detroit on Thursday and ride into Ohio Stadium on a three-game winning streak.
“I think that was our goal kind of going into the year after some of the injuries early on, was to play meaningful hockey at the Stadium Series, and that's exactly what we're doing,” Werenski said. “Tied with them in the standings, played them last night in a good hard-fought battle and tomorrow is going to be much of the same thing. It's just going to be a tight game, not much out there, obviously conditions are a little bit different, but we're excited for it. We're going to enjoy everything that the event has to offer and then once the puck drops, we're going to be ready to go.”
Evason doesn’t want his team approaching Saturday any differently than its other regular-season games, as the formula is clearly working for Columbus. Aiming to make their first playoffs in five years, every game is vital right now for the Blue Jackets.
“I get where we're both at in the standings, but I also think that we're coaching in the NHL, the players are playing in the NHL. You're trying to win every hockey game,” Evason said. “You're competing, it's your livelihood and you want to compete your butt off and try to get two points every night. So, sure, are the standings tight and all that and what have you, but we should be able to play the game the same way every night, regardless of where we sit.”
But none of that takes away from the pageantry of it all for Evason and his players. Puck drop is at 6 p.m. Saturday on ESPN.
“It’s here, so it’s exciting,” Evason said. “I asked the group to take it in, to just enjoy the experience, especially today. We’ll talk tomorrow about puck drop and (getting) two points and that stuff. But today is about getting prepared, no different than it is the day before a regular season game in an arena. You’re prepared, but you can still have some fun and enjoy it. It’s very special out there.”
